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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22368754">Memories Of Feelings Not Yet Acknowledged</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ernstpiet/pseuds/DarthGhengis'>DarthGhengis (Ernstpiet)</a>, <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ernstpiet/pseuds/Ernstpiet'>Ernstpiet</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Things I Write When I Should Be Studying/Sleeping [6]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Miraculous Ladybug</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Basically Marinette and Chat Noir Developing Feelings, Developing Relationship, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Marichat (Exclusively), Not Canon Compliant, Oblivious Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, Original Miraculous Histories, Plagg likes it, Romance, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Tikki is a schemer, What's the difference between those two?, no relationship yet, puns</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-01-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-01-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 12:14:21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,832</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22368754</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ernstpiet/pseuds/DarthGhengis, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ernstpiet/pseuds/Ernstpiet</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The start of Marinette and Chat Noir developing feelings for each other.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe (mentioned), Plagg/Tikki (Miraculous Ladybug)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Things I Write When I Should Be Studying/Sleeping [6]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1471805</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>235</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>miraculous ladybug stories</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Memories Of Feelings Not Yet Acknowledged</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Well, I've said before I wasn't sure if I could do a falling-in-love story justice (as there are just so many great ones out there) but a lot of people asked, so I went and did it.</p><p>Also, apologies for not updating sooner.. it seems the freedom of the holidays made me less diligent (shocker) than I should have been.. it is a thousand or so words longer than most of my others, so hope that partly makes up for it? Would have been longer, except I decided to get this out now.</p><p>Anyway, hope you enjoy and comment away! Seriously, comments are how I try to improve my writing.</p><p> </p><p>Quick Personal:<br/>I've seen a few spoilers for season 3, and I gotta say, I'm becoming less and less keen to watch it.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Finally falling into bed, completely exhausted by the events of Hawkmoth’s biggest assault yet, as well as the picnic the class had had this evening, Marinette wanted nothing more than to sleep through the entire holiday... yet she didn’t think she’d be able to go to sleep.</p><p>Unlike Tikki, who had gone to sleep the moment she landed on the bed Marinette had made for her, Marinette was dealing with something of an internal crisis. Sure, she had managed to kiss Adrien on the cheek before he had to leave, and most of the class had been supportive of her finally ‘making her move’ as they saw it... except the kiss wasn’t what they thought it was.</p><p>She wasn’t making a move... she was saying goodbye. Not to Adrien so much as her crush; deciding to try and move on. It wasn’t that she just woke up one day and didn’t have any feelings for him anymore, in fact she still cared about him a lot but... well.</p><p>It started earlier this year with the battle against Glaciator; she knew she was a bit... <em>overzealous </em>in her pursuit of Adrien, but that day it finally came to head. She wasn’t proud of the fact that she had caused some troublesome situations throughout her crush on the blond model, but that day she had really hurt someone through blatant thoughtlessness. Even worse, she had hurt <em>her partner. </em>Not physically, but on an emotional level - a level, she had come to realise, he was strangely vulnerable to.</p><p>She got momentarily side-tracked by a flash at anger at those who seemed to be neglecting her Chaton. She knew he wanted to reveal their identities to each other, and they had decided they would after they defeated Hawkmoth, since it was just too risky at the moment. She didn’t know what Chat’s reaction would be to finding out that she was Ladybug, but as soon as she found out who he is, she was going to slap the neglect right out of his absentee father! Whenever he wasn’t compulsively flirting or joking at inappropriate times, Chat was one of the sweetest guys she’d ever met, and it didn’t make sense to her that someone would hurt him..!</p><p>Marinette winced.</p><p>And <em>there</em> was what had started her series of wake-up calls. <em>She</em> had hurt him too. She could make excuses for herself by claiming she didn’t realise his feelings were more than just casual flirting at the time or that she had had her own personal problems that day... but the honest truth was she was so focused on Adrien, she just couldn’t be bothered with anything else.</p><p>It had made her start to question whether her feelings were entirely healthy; she knew she wasn’t some fan girl worshipping him for his looks or his fame, but she also knew her feelings for her crush had strayed a bit too much into infatuation.</p><p>There was also the night itself; objectively she knew she shouldn’t interact with Chat Noir in her civilian identity, but it was... interesting to see that other side of him. The side that was heartbroken, yet put his own heartache aside to cheer her up a girl he only knew in passing when he realised she was heartbroken too.</p><p>And so, when he had taken her back to her roof before heading off to fight Glaciator, she had grabbed him by the tail before he leaped away.</p><p>*************************************************</p><p>“Hey Chat Noir, just.. be careful out there okay? And thanks for cheering me up tonight. It means more than you know.. and if you ever feel like you don’t want to be alone again and need a break from being a hero, you’d be welcome here. I’ll even splurge and set out the expensive cream.”</p><p>He had stared at her unblinking for just a moment longer than would be considered normal, before his usual smirk was back on his face.</p><p>“I promise that if I need to talk to someone, your roof will be the first one I visit” he answered, before leaping away with a cheeky salute.</p><p>Though she didn’t know it, Adrien had become so used to having no one to talk to that it took Plagg days to convince him that her offer was sincere, and even then it would be almost a month before Chat Noir came calling on Marinette.</p><p>*************************************************</p><p>Marinette felt bad for Chat; she invites him over, and the first time he’s here she’s startled so bad she’s instinctively squirting him with the spray bottle she was using to water her few plants on the roof, which of course startled him so badly he fell off the railing.. honestly if she didn’t know his suit could take the fall, she’d have screamed the entire neighbourhood awake.</p><p>That didn’t stop her from laughing at his expression though; he looked so indignant she just couldn’t help herself.</p><p>“I’m sorry Chat Noir, you just startled me. I mean you’re the biggest stray I’ve ever found on my roof” she couldn’t help but tease with a small grin.</p><p>Chat Noir narrowed his eyes at her before reaching up and flicking his bell; “See this? I have a bell! Ergo, not a stray. Soo.. how have you been?”</p><p>Marinette raised an eyebrow, wondering exactly how that logic followed. Still, she didn’t miss the hesitancy in his tone. Something was bothering him, and based on how secretive she’d had to be during today’s battle with Syren.. well she had an idea.</p><p>She had barely given her answer before he sat up straight on one of the deck chairs they had moved to, and looked her in the eyes.</p><p>“Marinette.. can I trust you?” he started, before frowning and seeming to wave the question away, and continuing: “I mean, I know you’re a trustworthy person and all, but I need to talk to someone about.. something, and there aren’t really that many people I can go to about superhero problems you know? To be honest, only Ladybug or my kwa.. cat comes to mind. My cat doesn’t really give good advice, and Ladybug is sort of central to the problem. I actually wasn’t going to bother you, but I was exploring the city and saw you out here so.. Still, if you’d rather I leave I won’t hold it against you.” And he started to raise as if to make good on the offer, before she could interject:</p><p>“Honestly Chat Noir, you’re part of the superhero team that saves Paris on an almost weekly basis. The least I can do to repay that is to listen if you need to talk, don’t you think?”</p><p>
  <em>And besides, while I feel guilty about finding out what he wouldn’t say to Ladybug, it seems Chat really needs to talk to someone.. and at least I know I’ll never reveal his secrets to anyone else.</em>
</p><p>This seemed enough for him to finally open up, as he suddenly jumped up and started pacing while he seemingly poured his frustration out.</p><p>“That’s just it though! Ladybug means a lot to me, and I trust her with my life but sometimes..  There are a few things which we disagree on, but they aren’t really that big of a deal, the only major one being us keeping our identities secret because of Hawkmoth.. yet I realised today our identities weren’t the only secrets between us.”</p><p>He took a deep breath before continuing.</p><p>“I’ve got this other friend who - despite the fact that no one would ever guess the truth - is a <em>major</em> superhero geek, and she’s told me she had a theory that Ladybug and I have some sort of.. guardian or mentor. She had a bunch of supporting reasons, which I didn’t really buy into and since she doesn’t know I’m Chat Noir she didn’t realise I had.. inside information as it were. Except today I finally figured it out! There is some sort of guardian or whatever, and <em>that </em>is where Ladybug got the other Miraculous from. Which means she knows about him, and for some reason I don’t.. and it made me realise that maybe our identities aren’t secret because of Hawkmoth, maybe they’re secret because.. she doesn’t trust me.”</p><p>Finally stopping his pacing to lean on her railing with his head turned towards something she couldn’t guess at. A part of her wanted to immediately get up and tell him he’s wrong, but she couldn’t exactly tell him she knew Ladybug trusted him because surprise - she is Ladybug! However, before she could figure out a way to cheer him up, he sighed heavily and continued.</p><p>“That.. was a bit dramatic, even for me. I know she trusts me.. I just think that trust only extends up to a point. She seems to trust this.. sensei or master more than me, which - not to sound like an angsty teenager - kind of hurts. Granted the guy probably has some zen-mystery vibe going on - my life is too crazy to not expect that kind of cliché - but <em>I’m </em>her partner. <em>I’m</em> the one who fights with her every week, who sneaks out to patrol with her and try my best to protect her! So even if the reason my Lady keeps things from me is because of our oh-so-secret benefactor.. I don’t understand why his ‘orders’ are more important than my trust.”</p><p>Marinette didn’t show any outward reaction towards Chat Noir’s confession, but inside she was reeling.</p><p>
  <em>‘How did it come to this? I told Master Fu we shouldn’t keep this from him, and now look what’s happening! I think Chat Noir has developed a few negative preconceptions about the guardian, but considering Master Fu won’t even show himself to Chat you can hardly blame the guy.. Still. I’ll need to talk to Master Fu about this ASAP. For now, though.. now Chat just needs a friend.</em>
</p><p>Inner turmoil mostly settled now, Marinette stood up and stepped to where she could, after hesitating for a moment, put her arms around him to hug him from behind. She had planned to tell him that she was certain Ladybug trusted him with her life too, but the way he froze up as if unsure how to react to the physical contact suddenly ignited her old anger at Chat Noir’s father.</p><p>She pushed it down however, and moved to lean on the railing next to him but facing the opposite way, but when she spoke it was slow and soft enough that anyone without Chat Noir’s superior hearing would have had trouble making out the words.</p><p>*************************************************</p><p>Adrien was feeling a little bit mesmerised; Marinette really had a pleasant voice, and this was a tone of voice he’d never heard her use before.. not that they really speak that much in school. He made a mental note to maybe speak to her more often, but then focused back on the actual words.</p><p>“Look Chat, I can tell you care about m.. Ladybug a lot, but you need to remember that she’s only a teenage girl under that spotted mask; she can still make mistakes, and she probably worries a lot about doing the right thing. I don’t think it’s a matter of not trusting you Chat; I think she just sometimes.. buckles under the pressure. She hurt you, sure, but talk to her about it. The key to any partnership is communication after all.”</p><p>Adrien updated his mental note; forget talking to her, he needed to befriend this absolutely kind-hearted and compassionate girl. You could say he had something of an.. <em>appreciation..</em> for compassionate people (nothing to do with the lack of compassion at his home life at all) and the fact that Marinette saw through Ladybug’s image of the unstoppable heroine spoke volumes in her favour.</p><p>He knew a lot of people idolised his Lady, and while a part of him was glad of their recognition for her efforts, their expectations of her infallibility sometimes seemed to burden her too much.</p><p>Chat Noir shook his head with a sardonic smile on his face.. he hated when people put Ladybug on a pedestal and then expected her to live up to their ideals of her, and yet here he was making the same mistake.</p><p>“You know, Marinette, if you weren’t such a good designer you’d have made an excellent therapist. I hate when the people of Paris stop seeing Ladybug as human, and here I am almost falling into the same thought pattern..”</p><p>After a few moments of silence, his attention was grabbed again when Marinette said in a much lighter tone: “I realise you needed to talk someone today, and I’m happy to listen when you need to get something off your chest.. but you do know when I said you’re welcome here, I said anytime, and I meant it. So next time, don’t wait a month to visit me again, okay?”</p><p>Adrien felt a warmth spread through his chest at the sincere way she said it, and had to forcibly clamp down on a purr that almost escaped. He was still thinking of how to respond when Marinette let slip a yawn.</p><p>“And on that note, Princess of the balcony, I must be off,” he said with his usual dramatic flair and a bow, “but I promise I won’t wait another month before visiting again.”</p><p>He saw Marinette prepare to protest and cut her off by simply flicking her lightly with his tail, before jumping lightly onto the balcony. After saying goodbye and leaping away, he glanced back and saw her still standing at the railing smiling in his direction and was struck by an errant thought.</p><p>
  <em>‘The first time I called her princess might have been 20% reflex, and 80% pretty-girl-kidnapped-by-villain appropriate, but standing there in the moonlight she really does look like a princess...’</em>
</p><p>*************************************************</p><p>Another time Marinette saw Chat Noir he had <em>again</em> startled her (really, did his suit have to make him that stealthy?) and she had ended up flipping her sketch book so far it would have fallen off of her balcony had he not caught it.</p><p>Naturally he immediately started paging through the most recent designs before looking up at her with a strange expression.</p><p>“You know Princess, with how impressive the clothes you make for yourself  are, I honestly did not expect your design style to be so.. eccentric” he finished with an awkward smile.</p><p>She rolled her eyes at his attempts at politely asking <em>‘what the fuck’ </em>was going on with her new designs. New designs she had been stuck on redoing over and over for the entire weekend.</p><p>“Oh, calm down Chat, those aren’t everyday clothes. I’m trying to design an outfit for the superhero-themed costume ball the mayor always throws this time of year and let’s just say my muse has been acting... difficult.”</p><p>Chat’s ears perked up in sudden curiosity, and he suddenly leaned forward from where he was reclining in one of her chairs.</p><p>“Well personally I think you should just go with something Ladybug themed. And I don’t just mean because she is the most gorgeous girl in Paris! I saw you in that new video for Clara Nightingale, and I think you’d be able to do a great Ladybug impression... but wait, I heard that the mayor’s ball an adult-only event?” he asked, head tilted in curiosity.</p><p>Marinette’s emotions cycled rapid-fire at this information; exasperation for his over-the-top exclamations of Ladybug’s beauty even when she wasn’t there (and no she wasn’t blushing!), panic at the thought that he might know her identity and was teasing her with it (but no, she knew him by now and he showed no signs of teasing), curiosity at him being at the audition (knowing they had been so close to each other outside of the masks sent an odd mixture of excitement and nervousness through her) to excited as she seized on the last thing he said (which she could answer without thinking too much on the other comments).</p><p>“No, that is true. The design isn’t for me, it’s actually a commission by Nadja Chamack! My mother knows her and I sometimes babysit her daughter Manon? And I didn’t even offer to do it, she <em>asked</em>! This costume ball isn’t the most prestigious event in Paris, but it’s still pretty good exposure for me. I mean if I manage to make something good enough that it attracts attention, it could lead to even more commissions! Did you know that’s how Gabriel Agreste started? He managed to design a few pieces while still in school that impressed people so much that by the time he got his degrees in..” it was at this point she noticed the bemused expression on Chat Noir’s face and blushed furiously as she realised she’d been gushing about one of her fashion icons without even taking a breath.</p><p>“Sorry.. I can get a bit carried away some..” but before she could finish what was likely to be a rambling and overlong apology, she was interrupted by Chat waving her off and saying:</p><p>“Don’t worry Marinette, it’s good to see you have a hero you can look up to..”</p><p>His tone of voice made her narrow her eyes.. she <em>knew </em>that tone. It was the teasing tone he used whenever she embarrassed herself in front of him.</p><p>“..without making funny faces behind his back” he finished with a Cheshire grin.</p><p>“Wha.. bu.. you.. how?!” she sputtered; she knew he had been turned away.</p><p>This only seemed to amuse him more, however, as he burst into laughter.</p><p>“Here’s a <em>Paw-some</em> fact for you <em>Purr-incess</em>.. humans have <em>in-fur-ior</em> vision compared to us cats.. <em>be-claws </em>when I’m transformed, my <em>Purr-ephiral </em>vision is completely <em>claw-some</em>.. excellent for <em>cat-ching </em>mischievous designers” he finished with a too-proud smirk.</p><p>Marinette groaned and shut her eyes.</p><p>“Okay you alley cat, that was way too many puns. Off with you! Shoo! I’m going go to bed and try to forget that this ever happened. Seven puns at once? Too much! Now get out of here, before I get the hose!”</p><p>And Chat Noir, being the gentleman he was (And perhaps noticing her lingering embarrassment from earlier), merely saluted and leaped away.</p><p>She couldn’t keep the amused snort in any longer after he had left. Marinette stood watching her seemingly carefree partner disappearing into the night, his amused laughter still echoing back to her.. Before going down to her room though, a fond smile bloomed onto her face, unseen by any except the stars and her silently smirking kwami.</p><p>*************************************************</p><p>Chat Noir was apprehensive. Not because of a dangerous akuma, or because of something unpleasant he had to do. On the contrary, he usually quite enjoyed it.. but some instinct told him this visit to Marinette was going to be a bit different.</p><p>He had been visiting her a few times a month for a while now, sometimes more depending on whether he needed someone to vent to or if he noticed Marinette seemed down in class..</p><p>Last night had been fun, if a bit strange. He had arrived on her roof to find an entire plate of assorted goods from the bakery set aside for him and her insisting he could have all of it. It wasn’t the first time she had saved him something from the bakery, but she had kept sending these <em>looks </em>his way as he ate; he couldn’t even begin to wonder what she was thinking behind those bluebell eyes.. and then later, just as he was about to leave, she had (rather forcefully) asked if he could stop by again the next night.</p><p>So here he was. Heading to her for two nights in a row (he needed to be careful not to make a habit out of this; Marinette was warm and kind and caring - everything his house was not.) At one point he had wondered if she had figured out his identity, but he almost immediately discounted the possibility; Marinette and Adrien weren’t that close.</p><p>Sure they were friends, but they almost never hung out just the two of them. He and Nino were good friends, as was Marinette and Alya, and as a group of four they got along great. Yet he had noticed the few times they were hanging out alone, she seemed.. <em>off. </em>So despite how much he had enjoyed playing UMS with her, or just talking, he avoided inviting her over.. well that, and his father’s reaction to him bringing Nino over his first year in public school. No way was he subjecting her to that side of his father, especially knowing how much she admires him.</p><p>As he finally reached her roof, his apprehension turned to confusion. She was waiting with a determined expression, and a plate of croissants which - while delicious - didn’t exactly fit with the serious mood.</p><p>That didn’t stop him from taking the plate she offered and taking a seat next her though; the Dupain-Cheng bakery were really good at what they do.</p><p>“Sooo. I suppose you’re wondering why I asked you here. It’s.. uh, it’s kind of hard to ask this Chat.. but you’re my friend, and I’m worried about you. So.. so sorry if this is none of my business, but is everything okay at home..?”</p><p>Her question caught him so off guard, he choked on croissant. She seemed to notice his surprise as she continued before he’d recovered:</p><p>“It’s just.. You almost seem like you’re starving on some days? Don’t get me wrong, it’s no bother, but it makes me worry.. I’ve always gotten the idea you came from a relatively well-off family, but if I’m wrong and you’re struggling I want you to know that I’ll try my best to help you, okay?”</p><p>Chat Noir just gaped at her, trying to sort through the various thoughts running through his head. He didn’t know how to process this girl in front of him; how can someone be so kind and caring about a stranger (sure they were tentatively friends) who just occasionally shows up on their rooftop? She really was like Ladybug, he could easily imagine her doing the same thing for anyone she thought needed help..</p><p>“Ah, no Princess, this cat does not usually go hungry. I just have to follow a relatively strict diet in my everyday life, and I’ve recently come to realise while it may have been personalised for a guy my age.. most guys my age don’t run around in a leather cat suit fighting crime” he managed with a grin. He looked out over the city, before further explaining.</p><p>“There is no need to worry however; I can’t let Ladybug down by fainting on the job, and so I’ve already spoken to my father’s secr.. to my father about redesigning the diet. I’m hoping to play it off as an abnormally fast metabolism, and everything should be back on track by Friday” he finished, turning back to her, only to be caught off guard at the obvious way her expression of concern melted away into heartfelt relief.</p><p>Something came over him then and he stood suddenly, startling her upright as well. Before he even registered the action he had taken her hand and bent over to kiss her knuckles. He heard her make a sound of surprise, and when he looked up so her cheeks tinged red.. which suddenly made him realise what he had done, and caused him to blush as well.</p><p>Stuttering an excuse after thanking her for caring about his well-being, he launched himself into the city as fast as he could..</p><p>..momentarily fooling himself into thinking the faster beating of his heart was due to adrenaline, and not something else.</p><p>*************************************************</p><p>Marinette was laying back in one of her deck chairs while arguing Alya on the phone about The Voice battle between Karim and Wim; they had been going back and forth about who should have won (Alya foolishly thinking it was right that Karim won - honestly, she was dating a music fanatic, she should know better). Eventually they just agreed to disagree, although Alya did still have to get the final question in:</p><p>
  <em>“But whyyy though? How can you prefer Wim, he almost never moves during his performances!”</em>
</p><p>“I don’t know Alya, I guess I just prefer guys with a deeper voice.” she answered with a roll of her eyes.</p><p>
  <em>“Mmhmm. Anyway girl, I’m going to bed early, Nino is taking me to brunch for our a date and I want to look my best! Au revoir.”</em>
</p><p>Marinette smiled at the thought of her friend’s relationship with Nino; she couldn’t help but feel like she had had a hand in it - sure it might have happened anyway, but Ladybug locking them up together had clearly fast tracked their relationship.</p><p>As she turned around to head back inside, she saw something so ridiculous she burst into laughter. For Chat Noir was trying to sneak up behind her.. except he looked like he came out of a Tom &amp; Jerry cartoon.</p><p>“Chat Noir! You realise walking like that doesn’t actually make you sneakier, right?” she managed to wheeze out between laughs.</p><p>“Says you! I only had a few more feet to go and you had no idea I was even here, so there” he countered, childishly crossing his arms and sticking out his tongue at her.</p><p>Marinette narrowed her eyes.</p><p>“Chat.. exactly how long have you been here? Were you eavesdropping on my conversation..?”</p><p>“Of course not! Would I do that?”</p><p>Marinette squinted at him for a bit longer before shrugging. She thought she might have noticed his cat ears twitch, but she might have imagined it; and it wasn’t like the conversation was very private anyway.</p><p>Besides, she was happy to see him. It had been a few weeks since she had seen him last, with Hawkmoth also suspiciously quite, she hadn’t even seen him as Ladybug. The timing was great since Gabriel Agreste had been holding another design competition exclusive to the previous ten winners in Paris..  </p><p>Which she had won. She had to try very hard not be smug about it, but she had competed in only two competitions and won both - even though the second competition had other designers Gabriel had approved of.</p><p>Marinette was about to offer him a cup of hot chocolate, when she was startled by the sound of his miraculous beeping. She looked at him in confusion, and noticed he seemed confused as well.</p><p>“Ah.. apologies, Princess. I haven’t used my cataclysm yet, but it seems I must go..” he said, though he didn’t appear to be happy about it either.</p><p>“But you just got here! Can’t you recharge here, and stay a bit longer..?”</p><p>“I don’t have anything for my kwami to eat.. he only eats that Camembert cheese I’ve told you about? And besides, I can’t exactly de-transform on your roof Princess, someone might recognise me..”</p><p>Marinette pursed her lips, considering whether or not to confess that she had been keeping a small supply of camembert ever since she had found out what his kwami ate. And even if she did, she’d have to let him transform in her room.. It wasn’t like she didn’t trust him, but there were still a lot of pictures of Adrien on her wall (she had taken most of them down, and added a few of her other friends, but the thought of Chat seeing it made her strangely uncomfortable).</p><p>“Okay so.. I may have been keeping some camembert in my room for situations like this. It’s in my room in the small mini-fridge under my desk. You can go down and let Plagg recharge, but only if you promise not to go snooping!”</p><p>The grin on Chat’s face seemed slightly <em>off</em>, although she couldn’t place it before he was heading down.</p><p>“Of course, Princess! Chat’s honour, I won’t go snooping.. this time” he finished with a smirk, before closing the hatch behind him.</p><p>She wanted to ask him what exactly he meant by that, but she saw the green flash of light signalling his detransformation and just took a seat waiting for him.</p><p>“Uhhm.. Marinette? Aren’t you forgetting something a little embarrassing in your room..?” Tikki’s voice surprisingly piped up from beside her.</p><p>“It’s okay Tikki, with the amount of pictures of Adrien left I should be able to convince Chat they’re only there because I admire their featured designs.”</p><p>“Okay, but I wasn’t talking about the pictures. You remember how you haven’t been sleeping well this week..?” the kwami asked hesitantly.</p><p>Marinette rolled her eyes, not seeing where her kwami was going with this line of reasoning.</p><p>“Yeah, so?”</p><p>“Yeah so, what do you cuddle with when you can’t fall asleep?” the kwami countered with an eye-roll of her own.</p><p>Marinette felt her cheeks redden slightly.</p><p>“It.. it doesn’t matter, I put the plush away before Alya called, in case she wanted to make it a video call later!” she rambled out quickly.</p><p>“Uhhm.. No, Marinette, you didn’t.. it’s still on your bed” Tikki finished, rubbing her paws together seemingly nervously.</p><p>Marinette froze.</p><p>“So.. what you’re saying is, the Chat Noir plush is on my bed?”</p><p>“Yup.”</p><p>“My bed.. which is in my room?”</p><p>“Yup.”</p><p>“My room, in which Chat Noir currently is?”</p><p>“Yuup.”</p><p>“Chat Noir, who the plush is based on?”</p><p>“Yuup.”</p><p>“The plush I sometimes cuddle with, which is handmade and based on Chat Noir - who is currently in my room with the bed that the plush is sitting on and..” she startled to ramble, trying to somehow <em>think</em> her way out of the possible embarrassment to follow, only to be interrupted by Tikki:</p><p>“Snap out of it Marinette, I just saw the light flash of his transformation!”</p><p>Luckily she managed to calm herself just in time, as Chat indeed did come back up. She stared up at him a bit suspiciously, wondering if his kwami really did take that long to eat or if he had been snooping.. but no, he had promised.</p><p>Instead they spoke of lighter topics.. anything and everything really, the kind of topics that can be awkward small topic to most people yet simultaneously hold meaning when two individuals speak of them alone at night..</p><p> </p><p>“So Princess, I feel like there is something.. Un-<em>hiss</em>-takenly off about tonight. Something <em>you</em> should have mentioned by now, but haven’t yet.”</p><p>She held her breath, as Chat stared at her accusingly but with a small smile on his face.</p><p><em>“Puurr</em>-haps an achievement we should have been celebrating all night, instead of me just bringing it up as I have to leave for the night..? Alas you didn’t, and so you must accept your <em>pun-</em>ishment” he went on with a Cheshire grin.</p><p>Marinette narrowed her eyes at him.</p><p>“Oh please Kitty, I’ve survived worse than your puns! Bring it on.”</p><p>“Ah, as much fun as it would be, I’m afraid I have something different in mind.. I want you to promise not to return the gift I got you as congratulations.”</p><p>That caught her off guard, but not seeing him holding anything she didn’t expect it to be anything dramatic.</p><p>“Okay Chat Noir, I promise not to return your gift” she said. The flash of victory she saw in his eyes made her apprehensive, but she nevertheless stuck out her hand to him, palm facing upwards so he could place his gift in her hand.</p><p>*************************************************</p><p>Adrien saw her extending her hand out, and was about to tell her it wasn’t necessary when he noticed the Band-Aids that still covered several spots on her fingers, likely from getting pricked by her needles as she was designing.</p><p>So instead he took her hand and raised it to lay a kiss atop it.</p><p>“You should be careful, Princess, not to hurt yourself too much - even if it is in pursuit of your dreams.”</p><p>With that, he hopped onto her balcony railing, turning his head slightly back towards her to say: “The receipt for your gift is on your desk, you only need to pick it up - although I’d recommend asking your father or at least two friends to help, it was a lot.”</p><p>Adrien could hear Marinette make a startled sound, but leaped away to the building across the street before she could start to protest too much.. Sure those bolts of fabric had been expensive and okay so he had bought a lot of them (there were so many kinds though!), but she deserved it and he could afford it, so why not? She was a great friend to him both as Adrien and as Chat Noir.</p><p>When he got back home for the night and detransformed, however, he couldn’t help but gloat a bit.</p><p>“My genius plan totally worked! She completely bought that I was about to detransform and let me recharge in her room where I could leave the receipt without her noticing until I got her to promise to accept it! Marinette never breaks a promise, so everything turned out perfect” he laughed gleefully, rubbing his hands together as he had seen cartoon villains do while plotting (come to think of it, did Hawkmoth do it too? He wasn’t a cartoon character, but neither was Adrien, and yet here he was).</p><p>His musings on how cartoon-villain-esque Hawkmoth was got side-tracked however, as he noticed his Kwami shudder while looking at his hands.</p><p>“Kid.. please don’t ever do that thing with your hands. It gives me flashbacks to Atlantis.. Tikki always does that when she’s planning something” the kwami of destruction said in a strange tone.</p><p>“Ladybug’s kwami..? Wait, did you say Atlantis?! What do you mean, did her plans somehow go wrong and cause the destruction of..” yet before he could finish the thought, he was interrupted by Plagg’s scoff.</p><p>“Tikki’s plan? Fail? <em>Kid please.</em> Her plans never fail, but they are disturbingly complex and completely unpredictable. Somehow unimaginably subtle, while simultaneously managing to be bold! But then again.. how else would she be able to tame Destruction?” he finished with a Cheshire grin of his own, in that same strange tone Adrien was beginning to associate with his kwami speaking of his other half.. a tone that Adrien wasn’t entirely sure he understood.</p><p>*************************************************</p><p>That night, in two vastly different rooms in two vastly different homes, were two vastly different teens, guided by two vastly different beings who were as good as one; they were more alike than they knew, each thinking their own thoughts on the other and unable to fall asleep this night.</p><p>A girl, blue-eyed and dark of hair, holding a plush recreation of her best friend while trying to forget the feeling of warmth she got every time they made eye contact as he visited her this night.</p><p>A boy, green-eyed and light of hair, confused by the blush he felt after kissing her hand as he said goodbye while grinning at the memory of each smile he managed to coax out of her as he visited her this night.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Couple of things:<br/>- Adrien met the Guardian a few days after talking to Marinette, after she went and told him he needed to reveal himself to Chat Noir or else she would do it for him.<br/>- Alya. Redemption or no? Can't really make up my mind, so vote yay or nay to redemption.<br/>- The video about Karim Versus Wim is an actual thing; if you give it a listen, I'd like to hear an opinion on who you prefer.</p><p>As previous, the list of possibilities:<br/>- Marinette and Chat moving on from their respective crushes on Adrien and Ladybug<br/>- How Marinette realised she loved Chat Noir and vice versa<br/>- Chloé &amp; Nathaniel's date<br/>- Chloé &amp; Nathaniel falling in love (expanding on this chapter)<br/>- Marinette &amp; Chat falling in love (Going further from this work; possibly making this a two-shot)<br/>- A possible route I could take concerning Lila (Sadly not redemption; can't say I like the character enough to attempt it. This would involve her stepping up her bullying to something more intense, or even accepting an akuma to actually kill Marinette or her family - truly evil villians always go after family. Which is about the only way I could justify Chat killing her, instead of just trying to maim or grievously injure.)<br/>- Further expansion on my miraculous lore, specifically pertaining to Plagg &amp; Tikki (Though this would be a admittedly strange tangent I don't think many people will like)<br/>- A shorter chapter involving Adrien and Marinette meditating in order to 'speak' to the older users.<br/>- Other suggestions welcome of course, except those that would change the already tagged ships.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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